Takeo Omuro
Takeo was born on September 26, 1932 in Wailuku to Shigeru & Takeko Omuro. He was the youngest of four children. After graduating from H.P. Baldwin High School in 1950, Takeo proudly served in the US Army in Germany. Upon his return, Takeo honed his woodworking skills and became the owner/operator of Kahului Cabinet Shop. His later years would confirm what his true calling was, he became a master wood craftsman and artist. He participated in many craft fairs and art shows.
Takeo Omuro, 85, of Kahului, passed away peacefully at Kula Hospital on March 22, 2018, surrounded by his loving family
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Youngest of four, Takeo was
born in Kahului in 1932 of immigrant
Japanese ancestry. His father was a hard
working, entrepreneurial, Christian immigrant
of samurai stock who at 32 retroactively
completed the 8th grade at Lahainaluna.
He went on to several careers
including Bookkeeper and Bill Collector,
finally settling on a restaurant business in
Wailuku known as Omuro Sundries. It
remained a vibrant, family run business
for 40 years, closing in 1986.
For young Takeo, helping out
with the family business was natural and
expected but sawdust had gotten into his
veins at an early age. In 1950 Takeo began
working at B.J. Kim’s Cabinet Shop
making .75 cents an hour.
“It amazes me to think now of
what we did in those days” he says. “We
typically provided all the millwork,
doors, double hung sash, cabinetry and
trim for a house.
Two senior carpenters and myself!”.
He eventually rose to journeyman’s
pay of $1.25 per hour. Big money
then….
There was a lot to learn but the
real education began when along with 29
other Maui boys he was drafted as America
entered the Korean war. Hawaii was a
territory in 1952 but nevertheless, being
Hawaii born, he was a US citizen and
therefore eligible for the service.
Since an older brother was already
serving in Korea, Takeo’s first trip
from his island home was an extra long
one. After basic training at Schofield, he
hopscotched across two oceans and the
U.S. continent to report for duty in
Frankfurt, Germany.
It was a long way from home for
a local boy in the early ‘50’s but typically,
he thrived by making the most of
the experience. Once his natural ability
for construction became known, his talents
were put to use by Uncle Sam building
rifle stands, cabinetry and whatever
else was needed. He sufficed with meager
allotment of tools and materials and
struggled with the metric system.
As I sat with Takeo in Koho’s
restaurant for this interview, he passed
me a stack of those tiny black and white
photos with the scalloped edges. Here
was precious proof of ambitious projects
produced half a century ago, half a world
away. Takeo bubbled with enthusiasm as
he pointed out difficult details and explained
how most everything was accomplished
with hand tools!
In the Fall of ‘54, a civilian once
again and back on Maui, Takeo opened
Kahului Cabinet Shop. Here he provided
a full range of woodworking services
including furniture repair, cabinetry and
custom built furniture.
“There was no other way to learn
about joinery than first hand inspection”
he informed me,
“I would crawl under tables and
turn over chairs seeking clues.”
Kula resident Haku Baldwin provided
Takeo with much of his early education
as she needed a great deal of refinishing
and restoration of her old Koa furniture.
Often Takeo would make patterns
from antique furniture to use as learning
tools.
Like many before him, he discovered
that the “natural ability” to design
and build beautiful things was a long and arduous process of trial and error.
Throughout his career he kept
returning to lathe work as a point of fascination
and inspiration.
He produced giant bowls, platters,
lidded containers and much more
from whatever local woods he could salvage.
His truck and ever present chain
saw became a familiar sight in the forests
of upcountry Maui. Norfolk pine, monkey
pod and tamarind were some of his
favorite woods but he was willing to try
almost anything. During the 80’s and
90’s Takeo became a regular participant
in the burgeoning craft market scene
throughout Hawaii.
Over time, demand for his
wooden artistry became so great that he
could sell out months of work in a matter
of days at the big crafts fair held on
Oahu each December.
His finely developed sense of
design and skills became the topic of an
extensive cover story and article in the
May/June ‘92 issue of Woodwork magazine.
Pretty impressive for a self taught
local boy from Hawaii territory!
Takeo’s wry sense of humor and
ready chuckle are still his constant companions.
When asked what wisdom he
would most like to pass on to younger
generations of woodworkers he replied
with the name of a good hand surgeon
for “when you’ll need him” and finally,
“Don’t get old!”
Source: http://www.mauiguild.com/Newsletters/Volume2_Issue1.pdf
